Drew Taylor

Drew Wesley Taylor

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 6' 5", Weight 225 lbs.
• School Georgia Tech, University of Michigan, University of Toronto
• High School Upper Canada College

• Born August 2, 1982 in Toronto, ON CAN

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Drew Taylor is a left-handed pitcher.

In high school, Taylor was a four-year letterwinner at Upper Canada College in Toronto, ON for coaches Bart Badali and Brent McKay. As a senior, he went 6-1 with an ERA of 1.33 with 40 K's against just five walks. He had a 10-2 record with his Connie Mack World Series team, the Ontario Blue Jays. Taylor led his school to two second-place finishes in the TDCAA city baseball finals in 2000 and 2001. He was named to the GTA All-Star team by the Toronto Star and the Toronto Sun (local newspapers). In city bantam baseball, Taylor was named Leaside’s most valuable player, 45 years after his father won the same award.

In his collegiate debut on February 16, 2002, he worked a scoreless inning as a relief pitcher against Tennessee Tech. He made his first career start at Georgia State on March 13, 2002. He was a member of the 25-man roster who attended the College World Series in Omaha, NE. After transferring from Georgia Tech to the University of Michigan, Taylor achieved a 9-1 record with 51 strikeouts to 25 walks and won the Geoff Zahn Award as Michigan’s Most Valuable Pitcher in his first season as a Wolverine. Taylor received his first collegiate win pitching 8 1/3 innings to beat Bethune-Cookman University at Jackie Robinson Stadium in Daytona Beach, FL. His father Ron Taylor’s first win as a pro was 47 years earlier in the same park. He received All-Region second team and All-Big Ten first team honors that year, and was selected to the All-Canada team by Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun. In the summer of 2003, he played for the Wareham Gatemen in the Cape Cod League with an ERA of 1.53 over 17 2/3 innings in 2 starts and 5 relief appearances. Taylor pitched in just two games in 2004 before being sidelined with an arm injury. In 2006, he served as a team captain for the 2006 Big Ten regular season and tournament champion Wolverines. That year he was selected onto the All-District and All-Big Ten Academic teams. He finished his college career with a 19-10 overall record.

He was signed by the Toronto Blue Jays as un undrafted free agent in 2006. Taylor spent 2006 with the Pulaski Blue Jays starting one game and making 22 relief appearances with 1 win and 3 losses to his name. He had an ERA of 3.95 with 37 strikeouts in 27.3 IP. In 2007, he moved to the Auburn Doubledays and was 1-0 with an ERA of 4.55 in 16 games over 27.7 IP. He was voted Best Teammate by the players and coaches on the 2007 Doubledays roster. In 2008, Taylor agreed to a free agent Contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, but left the club before the season began. That same year he pitched for the Traverse City Beach Bums in the Frontier League, and was 2-1 with an ERA of 2.77 in 6 starts over 39 IP.

In 2008, Taylor joined the roster for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the Intercounty Baseball League and earned the John Douris Memorial Trophy for Top Pitcher with a 6-1 record with 49 strikeouts to 22 walks and a 2.96 ERA, good enough for third overall among pitchers, tops among left-handers, and a spot on the first team All-Star team. At the close of the 2009 IBL season, his ERA was 2.75 over 68 2/3 IP with 6 wins and a loss over 12 games, good enough for sixth overall in the league among pitchers. Taylor has played in the IBL All-Star game in 2008, 2009, and 2010.

He was named to the preliminary 40-man roster to represent Great Britain at the 2009 Baseball World Cup, but was not able to take part the tournament.

Personal Info

Drew Taylor is the first son of Ronald and Rona Taylor and he has a younger brother Matthew who has a career in the film industry. His father Ron Taylor is a team doctor for the Toronto Blue Jays and spent 11 years in the Majors, playing for the '69 "Miracle Mets" and also pitched for the '64 World Champion St. Louis Cardinals.

Taylor has a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Michigan and a Master of Science in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology from Michigan’s Rackham Graduate School. At Michigan, Taylor won the inaugural Ray Fisher Scholarship for Baseball for the 2005-06 season, as well as receiving the Samuel L. Westerman Foundation Scholarship for Baseball in 2004-05, and the Marlin H. Pemberton Baseball Scholarship for 2003-04. He is working on his PhD in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto and hopes to pursue a career in medicine like his father.

Sources:

• Georgia Tech bio
• Intercounty stats for 2009
• U of M bio
• Toronto Sun article
• Baseball stats